Hi, my name is A, and I am a feminist.
I used to cringe at the term; feminist. I still cringe at it sometimes.
Feminist is a word a lot like Christian. It can get a bad reputation. Christians are closed-minded, narrow, hateful people. Feminists, in turn, are rude, whiny, man-hating women.But that’s not the whole story on either of these words and people.
Two days ago, was International Women’s Day. I posted all day on social media about women; about how far we had come, how far we had to go, and how proud I am to be a women. Let me tell you, it did not go over well with a few of my family and friends.
I am a feminist that believes in the power of choice. Women get to choose what to do with their bodies. Women get to choose what job they have. Women get to choose
There are women who don’t have a choice. They don’t get to choose what to wear because they are beaten if they choose the ‘wrong’ thing. They don’t get to choose their jobs because it was given to a man who had less qualifications, but no children to worry about.
I fight for those women.
I have 2 friends; both under 25, single, and have multiple children. They have both been denied(multiple times) to get their tubes tied. Why? Because their future husbands may want children with them. Husbands they have yet to meet, I might add.
But what about preventing with birth control, A? Even if we could find a method that’s 100% effective, BC is not easily accessible and now it may not even be free.
This is why I fight.
All I have heard out of my family’s mouths’ is that I should stop whining, be grateful that I have a better life then most, especially women in the Middle East.
They are right. I am blessed. Blessed to be a white women raised in the South. I was blessed to be raised middle class and seldom saw true poverty. I am blessed.
I am privileged. That doesn’t mean I did struggle or that I don’t have to battle things everyday, but I have never had to fear for my life when pulled over by a cop. I have never been called demeaning and degrading names purely based on the color of my skin. I never had to defend what I was wearing or saying or drinking after I was assaulted. My friends and family and cops just believed me.
This is why I fight.
We live in a world where we are teaching women that they need to dress, act, and behave a certain way, that they need to defend themselves from men assaulting them instead of teaching men not to assault women.
Where the wage gap in America, on average, is 77 cents to every man’s dollar. But when we compare the exact same training, experience, education, job, etc; the gap is still 95 cents to every man’s dollar. I fight to have my dollar match a man’s dollar. In every field.
I fight because both Ashton Kutcher and Amal Clooney spoke on sexual slavery in the last 30 days but Time magazine was only interested in Mrs. Clooney’s baby bump.
I think Jesus was the first and greatest feminist.
He brought a known whore into his inner circle, his squad, and told anyone who didn’t like it to shut it.
When Martha said her sister Mary should have been in the kitchen helping serve Jesus and his men, Jesus was the first to say that women do not belong in the kitchen; that Mary choose to hang out and chill with Jesus and that was a great choice.
Here’s where I point out my other blogs noting my desire to basically be a 50’s housewife when it comes to my romantic relationships. Here’s the kicker…. IT IS MY CHOICE!
Notice the bold, italic Capital letters? My choice, not yours, not hers, not anyone but mine.
That is what feminism means to me and why I will now fight for women around the world. Choices. More of them. All of them.
Modern Miss Bennet 